The first block was Noah and Matilda's, it was more straight forward to figure out. The mystery there was the city (Lawrenceburg) and the significance of the date.
Maybe, it's all pulled together now - and raised other questions.
The answer might be Noah and Matilda traveled back east from Illinois to Indiana to visit their daughter.
First thought was maybe M was for Matilda and S was her maiden name - that didn't fit with wedding dates.
If it was WS, or MS no family members could be found.
Doreen (Aunt Reen) made a fabulous proposal. A big thank you to super sleuth Deb in Florida too.
What if it is M for Millie, and Mille is Amelia's nick name?
Amelia is Matilda's daughter who married Christian Spiegel in 1845. They married in Illinois, but the 1850 census shows them living in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. Matilda's inked block says she visited Lawrenceburg in 1851.
Lawrenceburg is near the point where Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana meet. Matilda was born and married in Kentucky so perhaps her visit included other friends and family. Was the quilt a gift?
I think it is interesting Matilda's daughter had her hand in making Matilda's quilt (we don't know how), and my daughter drafted the patterns from the antique. Now I know how I will ink my two blocks! Of course with my daughter's initials in Amelia's block.
The patterns are still available HERE.
What do you think?
How long did Matilda visit on her trip east? Long enough to make a quilt?
Did they make it together?
Did Amelia make it after moving to Indiana and present it to her mother when she visited?
Is it Amelia's quilt and she commemorated the visit of her parents on HER quilt?
It would make a great story!
Have a good week,
Dawn
So very interesting!! You finished top looks fabulous! I love the border :0)
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful lettering on the original quilt and these mysteries are so much fun trying to solve.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update! I am in love with this quilt and can't wait to finish mine :-)
ReplyDeleteA great new chapter to the story, but will probably always remain open ended. Your quilt looks awesome. I need to get over the hurdle of making more grapes and finish mine!
ReplyDeleteI am loving the journey that N&M is taking so many people on...
ReplyDeleteA big party is more fun than a small party. Thank you for your encouragement.
DeleteIt's a MYSTERY to me how anyone could have the patience to make all of those little grapes, ha ha ! : ) Your top is just gorgeous and now I'm going back to click and enlarge and look at it again...
ReplyDeleteMy approach is to look at just a few a day. A cluster a week and before I knew it they were done. My actually miss them!
DeleteYour top is amazing--and the history is fascinating!
ReplyDeleteSo interesting - I guess this just reminds us all how important it is to label our quilts and to add as much info as possible. Your quilt looks amazing - I love everything about it. I've still got those patterns right here to remind me. One of these days I will get to them!
ReplyDeleteSo interesting that there can be added some more pages to the "book" of Noah&Mathilda, and I am really curious if we can ever have the complete story. I guess not, but this also adds to our imagination, when thinking of the couple as we sew our own interpretation of the quilt. I am collecting my fabrics and hope to start soon!
ReplyDeleteLoved seeing the whole quilt - great quilt sleuthing. It is fun to wonder about those old quilts
ReplyDeleteVery interesting! I wish we had more information about some of these quilts.:)
ReplyDeleteSo many interesting things to ponder about this quilt. I really enjoy reading about the people who made these wonderful quilts. Mine is all together ready to be quilted. I just need to find a space large enough to take a photo.
ReplyDeleteYour completed Noah and Matilda top is beautiful, Dawn. You are so enjoying solving the mystery involved with this quilt. I don't know how to even start with the history involved.
ReplyDelete